"Jesus" is pacing back and forth going over his lines.
On stage, several women have just discovered his body is missing and run screaming.
Over the past few weeks, the actors have been practicing scenes for the last curtain call of First Baptist Church's popular Atlanta Passion Play. The play, which has been seen by more than a million people, is ending its run after 35 years. The last shows will be held April 9-10 and April 15-17 at the Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center.
Like every practice since the play debuted on Good Friday in April 1977, things starts with a prayer.
"Thirty-five years is a good run," said John Glover, the producer and creator. "I don't know of a church that's done a program like this for so long. The leadership feels like after 35 years, it's time to quit. A lot of people are upset."
Glover, who also serves as the church's minister of special events, won't go into many details about why they're pulling the plug. Money wasn't a factor, he said, because the play -- which costs "hundreds of thousands" of dollars to put on -- pays for itself with ticket sales.
However, he agrees with the decision. "It's sad, but it's time to stop." Over the years, the attendance began to drop off, particularly after Mel Gibson's 2004 film "The Passion of the Christ," which graphically detailed the final hours and crucifixion of Jesus Christ. He said some people confused the two and worried the play might be too gory for families. It isn't, Glover said, although he does use fake blood in some scenes and Jesus is "whipped."
Over the years, it's brought families together in the audience and onstage.
Fourteen members of the Spears family have been in the play at one time or the other from patriarch Jule Spears, 79, to his grandchildren -- one of whom once played the baby Jesus. This season, Spears, a semiretired pharmacist from Chamblee, plays a Sanhedrin priest. His wife, Edith, is head of the costume committee and a member of the chorus.
"We're sorry to see it go, but it's been a great 35 years," he said. "It's been such a major part of our church. The beauty of it is that our children and grandchildren got to see it happen -- not just read about it but see it."
The cast numbers hundreds. All volunteer and all are members of First Baptist. Only a few musicians and unions workers are paid.
"You can feel the presence of the Lord during the play," said Randy Thomas of Dunwoody, one of the actors. "The Spirit touches people's hearts and helps them understand what really happened. The play is like a history lesson, and for the actors, it draws them closer as a body."
The most difficult roles, perhaps, are Jesus and Judas. During one rehearsal, the director, crying, asked people to pray for and be considerate of the actor who plays Judas. "It's a difficult role to play," she said.
Glover explains that the actor who plays Judas usually gets a lot of ribbing from other castmates that, over time, can take its toll. It's also hard emotionally to play the role of the man who betrayed Jesus.
Another hard role is that of Jesus. "We really pray for Judas and Jesus because of the attacks I know they are going to have," he said. For Jesus, that attack might come from Satan. "It could be something at work or at home," he said. "Something usually happens to the people who play those two roles. Some people have gotten sick, and they don't know if they can make it onstage. "
Also as a rule, Glover said, he doesn't let the same actor play Jesus for more than two consecutive seasons, so the play won't become about one person.
This is the second year that Greg Brown, a 43-year-old manager for a tax processing business, has played Jesus.
"It's an honor to play Christ," said a bearded Brown, who prepares for the role through prayer and reading Scripture. "It's incredibly humbling."
He's walked down the hall at church and heard kids say, "There's Jesus."
"It's a heavy responsibility," Brown said. "It keeps you on your toes."
Some actors said they felt stronger spiritually participating in the play.
And that's what Glover wants from the audience as well.
"I always wanted to present the life of Christ in a very dramatic musical setting," said Glover, 70. "It was ambitious but everyone was doing Christmas pageants and I didn't want to copy someone else. I wanted to do something new."
In 1977, he launched the "Life of Christ Pageant." Then, in 1979, he heard about the famous Oberammergau Passion Play, which has been performed in Germany every 10 years since the 1630s. In 1980, he changed the name of the production to the Atlanta Passion Play. It starts with the birth of Christ and goes through the Ascension.
"I want people to see his life vividly portrayed on stage, and I want it to be biblically accurate," he said. "They see the re-enactment of Jesus being beaten and crucified. I want it to be very clear that he did that as a man who had no sin to become sin for you -- the audience. Then you see him resurrected and ascend."
What's next?
Glover is considering doing a new play called the "Acts of the Apostles."
"The reason I've done this from the very beginning is strictly to get the Gospel message of Jesus Christ to the world."
Preview
Atlanta Passion Play
11 a.m. and 4 p.m. April 9 and 16; 3 p.m. April 10 and 17; 7:30 p.m. April 15. $10-$25, plus service charge. Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center, 395 Piedmont Ave., Atlanta. 770-234-8400, www.atlantapassionplay.org.
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